Former Dawson County Clerk of Courts Becky McCord will be back in Superior Court next month after a judge rejected her guilty plea on theft by taking and violation of oath of office charges.

Northeastern Judicial Circuit Superior Court Judge Kathlene Gosselin did not publicly say Friday why she refused to accept the plea, which had been negotiated and approved by both the state and McCord's attorneys.

Former Dawson County Clerk of Courts Becky McCord will be back in Superior Court next month after a judge on Friday rejected her guilty plea on theft by taking and violation of oath of office charges.

Northeastern Judicial Circuit Superior Court Judge Kathlene Gosselin did not publicly say why she refused to accept the plea, which had been negotiated and approved by both the state and McCord's attorneys.

A local man awaiting trial on vehicular homicide charges in Lumpkin County has pleaded guilty to separate felony charges in Dawson County.

Appearing Sept. 7 before Superior Court Judge Andrew Fuller, Jeremy Todd Adams admitted his role in a February case in which he was charged with false imprisonment, interfering with a 911 call, simple battery and criminal trespass.

Less than a month after he was named to the National Drug Court Hall of Fame, the judge responsible for envisioning a treatment court in Dawson County was honored during a ceremony marking the program's fifth anniversary.

"I've been really given too much credit," said Northeastern Judicial Circuit Senior Judge John Girardeau. "Those of us who work in the drug court arena know that success is never attributable to just one person. It is a collaborative effort.

Convicted killer Gary Michael Hilton pleaded not guilty Monday in a North Carolina federal court to allegations he kidnapped and murdered an elderly couple in 2007.

Already serving a life sentence for a Georgia slaying and awaiting execution in Florida for another, Hilton could face the death penalty for the double murder of John and Irene Bryant who disappeared while hiking in the Pisgah National Forest in North Carolina.